Zona

Talk at ya in a month.

Negro y Blanco y otros - Contigo Avanzar



This video was made by a collection of Bolivian musicians. The song talks about eradicating poverty, establishing universal basic education, promoting gender equality, reducing infant mortality, providing better prenatal care, combatting serious diseases like HIV and malaria, bettering the environment and other goals in Bolivia and the world by 2015.

The guy playing the electric guitar is Grillo Villegas. I've spoke about him before. He wrote the song. Contigo Avanzar. Advance with you.

You also get to see a wide variety of Bolivian faces. Maybe you'll see why I love Bolivia so.

Let's kick off the weekend postitos because I'm tired and sun burned.

FRI:

I was enjoying the fireworks the other night when the odor of marijuana invaded my space. Too many Vancouverites need to grow up once and for all. Wine. Drink wine at these events. Don't fuck with me and my grandson with your second hand pot smoke. Did you know that BC bud is grown in a sespool of liquid chemicals? You might as well be sniffing chemicals that they use to rinse out oil tankers.

SAT:

I had a night dream that I went into a large room for a steak dinner. There was music a few couples dancing. An old woman grabbed my hand and wanted to dance. I said I wanted to eat first and plotted how to eat and get the hell out of there. Two other women at the table laughed and told me that the woman hits on every newcomer. My future in a retirement home?

I have a day dream about Sunday dinner in some European estate with a long table with linen and fine china. Light breezes and the sun partial blocked out by trellised vines.

I headed out for Point Roberts to check the p.o. box when I realized I had forgotten my passport. I HATE having to go back for anything but this time I had too. So I pull into the driveway and as I am about to open the front door I discover that I had my passport in my front pocket all along.

I have a funny belief when stuff like this happens. I believe that my delay kept me from some sort of great harm. It's like I was prevented from being at some place at the precise time and now some catastrophe was averted by my absence. Maybe it's somebody's prayer for my safety answered.

 

 

I got flipped off in traffic. The guy thought he insulted me but he didn't. If you flip somebody off and they see it in their rear view mirror it aint worth shit. I laughed and waved. You see, it was a merging traffic situation and I had already let one car merge ahead of me. I don't let two. So black SUV man flipped me off. I hope the woman in the passenger seat was impressed because I wasn't.

He's just lucky TV series Zona Boy wasn't around.

TV series Zona Boy would have slammed on the brakes, turning his red machine sideways blocking both lanes making escape forward impossible. The sound of cars screeching to a halt would have made escape from the back impossible as well.

TV series Zona Boy would have exited the vehicle calmly and doofus in SUV would have thought to do the same until TV Zona Boy whipped the Baretta .40 cal with twelve in the mag and one in the pipe from the small of his back. Then in a panic SUV limp dick would have locked his door. Not gonna work this time panty waist.

"Get out of the car or I shoot you through the window. Get out and live. Stay in and your blood ruins the upholstery".

So he gets out. Smart move. Soon he's flat on his stomach as his blonde passenger ruins her upholstery with her urine. I don't imagine the view down the working end of a Baretta barrel is a pretty sight.

"I let one car merge in front of me already bud. That means YOU merge behind me. UNDERSTAND?"

"yes sir"

"Now stick that naughty digit in your mouth."

"yes sir"

"Bite until it bleeds."

"yes sir. ouch"

"Have a nice day butt hole hair."

"thank you sir"

Don't fuck with TV series Zona Boy.

 

 

When losers find a raft

I didn't notice the shirt when I shot the pic. It completes this pic.

I dug up my old high school prom pic in honor of the 30 year grad anniversary

Green hair

Plastic hair

Geisha hair

Hair with breasteses (my favorite kind)

The road down to English Bay passes through what some might call a liberal part of town. The guy with the bubbles was about 12 stories up. It was quite beautiful to watch his pre-fireworks display of celestial artistry. 

What? Did you think I was gonna sit my ass on a blanket all afternoon when I had a zoom lens at the beach? 

Going down to watch the fireworks at English Bay tonite. I've been given the perfect camera gear backpack (side pack actually) for my birthday. Time to break it in. It should make my combat lens reload tactic much easier than jamming the zoom into my front pocket.

It's Italy's turn in the fireworks competition.

If they don't impress me I'm never gonna stop giving Smelly Danielley shit about it.

My Canada box set is finished.

Nine discs.

Eight rock and roll and one hip hop/soul/pop cause I'm versatile

The hip hop/soul/pop contains tunes by,

Ridley Bent
Sweatshop Union
Sky
Jacksoul
Remy Shand

Groups who got their own CD,

Matt Good
Tragically Hip
Big Sugar
Jann Arden

Gee ZB, your birthday is in three days. What would you like from el blogo sfeero on that day?

Hmmmm. How about 48 comments?

Why 48?

You have got to be the dumbest voice in anybody's head around.

Screw it, let's boogie

I have the next six days off so I'm finally going to get of my ass and do something I've been telling myself I wanted to do. I'm going to compile a "box set" of Canadian tunes. Here's a partial line up.

Disc 1:

Big Sugar faves (done)

Red Rover
Better get used to it
Butterball
Let it ride
On the scene
unk title (but it's a great tune from Heated)
Kicking stones
Digging a hole
If I had my way
Nicotina
I don't mind
Hammer in my hand


Disc 2:

Tragically Hip faves (pretty much done. just needs a couple of tweeks)



Disc 3:

Matt Good faves

Disc 4: (and 5 and 6 and...?)

Two or three songs from bands like,

Wide Mouth Mason (Companion, Midnight Rain, Why)
Jann Arden (she might get her own disc)
Sass Jordan
54-40 (She la, Ocean Pearl, Nice to love you)
Edwin (Alive, Let's dance, and one or two others)
Our Lady Piece (Naveed, Superman's dead, One man army)
Big Wreck
Kim Mitchell (All we are)
Default
Nickelback (relax Binsk. just a couple from The State)
Tea Party (The messenger, Angel)
Blue Rodeo (Lost together, Try. Try is one of my all time fave songs by anyone, anywhere)

and a few others


No Rush, no Bryan Adams, no Supertramp. I just want tunes on this set from bands I've discovered since I moved to Canada in 1999.

There will be some one hit wonders like Age of Electric, Our Mother Earth, and others who I can't think of right at the moment.

I'll update later with complete disc lists so you Canadians will know how cool I am.

SUGGESTIONS ARE APPRECIATED

UPDATE:

Jann got her own disc.

Waiting in Canada
Thing for you
Will you remember me?
Where no one knows me
I would die for you
Sleepless
In your keeping
Sorry for myself
The sound of
Weeds
Could I be your girl
Gasoline
Wonderdrug
Living under June
Good mother
Another human being

I started with a "welcome to Jann" song and ended with two of her finest. Good mother is one of the most touching tributes you'll ever hear and Another human being was inspired by a trip she took to Africa. She sponsors a child there and made a public service spot for television supporting the organization that she donates to. Another human being gets to me every time I listen to it

My spirit yearns for something that I cannot identify. It feels like I have very little time to do a lot of things. I am tired but sleep feels like a waste of time right now. My head feels like a balloon filled with warm air. I cannot be anywhere but the here and now for some reason. Like a dream where you need to escape something. Everything is moving in normal speed but I'm in slow motion and my feet are encased in blocks of lead.

I want to shoot a thousand, TEN thousand photographs. Anonymous people. Unrecognizable pieces of far off places. I want to produce results that split the critiques down the middle between genius and insanity.

My silence starts August 1 but I want to start now but I can't.

Not quite yet.

Then when I begin to speak again I want some to hear whispers while others hear shouts.

One month of silence followed by one month of noise.

Soon.

In the meantime accept today's observation of two girls. Both young but one younger.

The younger one had an aura of extreme energy controlled for now because no effort or task was required. I asked her what she was going to be when she grew up and she said an actor or producer. That made sense to me but I think more to the production. I told her I could sense that she was going to dominate anything she attempted to do. I told her mother that her daughter was a "dynamo". This girl will reach and grab and not let go. Her mother beemed and then gave her daughter a kiss.

The older girl was prettier and just a bit older and plumper. I caught a sense of somebody who was going to find fame in adult entertainment. Then I thought to myself that I was thinking that soley based on the fact that she had large breasts and I shook it off. Then I looked at her mother's ID photo and sensed a woman who hounds her daughter. There were two daughters but she gets on this one more. They say that parents clash with the child most like them.

I looked at mom's face and didn't see the same thing. Then I looked at the girls face and saw a sort of happy. When I went back in my mind I sensed that my thoughts at the time somehow alarmed the two and they quickly put on masks.

Interesting.

Weekend dead ahead. Here's some post confetti or postetti

FRI:

I got a package from the lovely Chloe. A CD and a bottle of liquid intoxicant. The printing on the label is all in Greek. I'll probably understand what it says when I down the contents. I think she's trying to get me drunk and seduce me. Thank you Chloe!! XOXOXO (It works everytime BTW)

I realized yesterday that since I have been extended in Canada, I can count of having vacation time around my 25th anniversary next June. The wife will mark the occasion in Bolivia. I haven't decided where I'm going celebrate. Vegas leads the candidate list.

Spoke to Leisha Hailey today. We chatted about her music and Alice and how she wants me. Take THAT, L Word fans. :p

SAT:

I just found out that I'll be off on August 6th. That's the day the Pride Parade hits downtown Vancouver streets. Camera and I will be there. Oughta be fun.

SUN:

I spoke to not one, but TWO vampire women today. One claimed that she was a good vampire and that the other was evil. Of course my thought when it comes to vampire women is that they're ALL good. You can see these two vampire on USA Network's The 4400.

.....out of ten times

One out of ten times I can make a three point shot
Two out of ten times I can make a twelve foot putt
Three out of ten times people say Bush is okay
Four out of ten times when I feel like shooting, it's cloudy
Five out of ten times I finish what I start
Six out of ten times my wife gets into bed without waking me
Seven out of ten times I'm not interested in talking to somebody who is standing in front of me
Eight out of ten times I play golf by myself
Nine out of ten times I have to adjust the seat when I get in the car in the morning
Ten out of ten times, when people tell me the picture on their ID is a bad picture, it ends up looking EXACTLY like them.

War has broken out in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel. People are dying on both sides as American vacationers wonder why they can't be swept to safety instantaneously by American forces emblazoned with a big red "S" on their chests.

THIS is what I hate about traveling Americans. They think themselves different than others. I had a man in Aruba talking to me almost to the point of screaming because he was sure that his human rights had been violated. Something had been done to HIM that he knew should not have happened to him on the island of Curacao.

Was he jailed and beaten by corrupt police? Was the town where he was staying shelled by forces from the island of Bonaire?

No.

What his was livid about, and wanted me to rectify instantly, was that when he checked into his hotel the desk clerk had held onto his passport. It was, of course, returned to him when he checked out. Many of you who have traveled the world know that this is a common practice with hotels. Then he was livid with ME when I told him that when he was in a foreign country he was subject to that country's laws and customs.

The American and Canadian embassies in Beirut are now overwhelmed by citizens who believe it their right to be transported like starship crew out of Lebanon.

I wish that I was a computer photo changing wizard.

I would then switch the faces of the family in the photo above with faces of a family from Darfur or North Korea or Bagdad or any of the Central African countries.

Then nobody who works for a western embassy would care.

And that my friends, is my twice annual monthly political thought of the day.

Now it's MY weekend.

Golf
Photography
Sleep
Vedge
Maybe blog

My oldest is pregnant
The next one is on tour
Then comes summer school girl
The youngest is a farmworker

The baby is the prince of the house

Dad reflects a lot
Mom stays up too late

A friend has been following my blog lately and is quite taken by a couple of you girls. I won't say which girls but I WILL say that you have no reason to be afraid.

Another friend is commenting about my sexual preference and I will spank her next time I see her. She's just busting my balls. I'll have to dig up that pic of me and her in a Tijuana whore house. THAT'LL learn her!

Song of the moment: Nada One by Heart

Moment's over

Sweet dreams most of you

Good morning Euro buddies

Here are the kids in order of age. I went through the pics and cropped out my fave of each of them. The picture of my youngest smiling like that is quite rare. He's a happy kid but he prefers to look "cool" when you take his picture. 

Allow me to present Lady Zona and the Zonlings. As they get older these opportunities get fewer and farther between. This is the best picture I've gotten of them since they were all much younger. The son on the right is actually taller than the son on the left but son on the left isn't too fond of that fact so he's standing on the fireplace hearth 

Maybe it IS because I am a confident man

I'm not afraid to say that a man is hot, or attractive, or good looking. I say the same about women. Of course I am attracted to women in very different ways than I am to men because I am heterosexual.

I have friends of all sexual orientations and I interact with them on various levels, none of which is sexual in nature. I am comfortable around people of all sexual orientation because at my age and my body shape I am fairly sure that I am not the object of desire that my ego sometimes makes me out to be.

I told a woman the other day that she was gorgeous and given the setting in which we found ourselves (two paths crossing in random circumstance) she knew that I was sincere, and told me that it made her day.

I told a member of a men's water polo team that he was a good looking man and he looked at me funny.

I ask gay men if they came up to Vancouver to get married and if they say no I ask which one is afraid of commitment and they laugh. They know I'm a straight man but instantly sense my tolerance of their life choices.

It's the same with lesbians and I get pretty much the same response.

I see the faces of gays and lesbians loosen up when they realize that I have no problem with who they are and I engage them in polite conversation and humor. It's too bad they don't find that more often.

I'll quote a line from a gay man in a TV series if any of you wonder if maybe I'm actually a little gay.

Two straight men were wondering if a guy in a bar was gay so they asked their gay friend if he thought the man was gay. He looked down and quickly said,

"Not with those shoes."

 

 

 

Weekend sound bites (because SOMEBODY has to blog)

A 57 year-old tourist came through wearing a Victoria Gay Pride t shirt. The thing is that he was not gay. He was with wife and two kids. I know what you're thinking and you're wrong. He was a naive idiot plain and simple. The t shirt was a square of rainbow colors with a maple leaf cut out. I chuckled a lot.

Today (7/15) is my sister's birthday. She's the same age as me for the next 13 days. People used to bug us about being twins when we were kids.

I saw a bit on the news where Florida wildlife officials are catching people feeding wild alligators. It is illegal to feed them because they then lose their natural fear of humans and then humans become a new fun food source. I suggested out loud that wildlife officials should sneak up behind idiots feeding gators and give them a good shove towards the hungry animal. Problem solved.

The New York doctor who blew his own building up in a bizarre suicide attempt has died in the hospital. There is speculation that he blew his house up so his wife would not get proceeds from the sale of the building/home in the divorce. Realty people have now speculated that the lot the house sat on is MORE valuable WITHOUT the building. Seems the doctor did his widow/soon to be ex-wife TWO favors.

 

 

Lap it up girls 

I'm SO stoked!!

why are you stoked?

I got V.I.P. tix and a camera pass to the fashion show and Swollen Members concert tomorrow at The Commodore. It's a benefit for the B.C Children's Hospital so you know I'll have the check book along to make a good donation.

www.deucejeans.com

I figured out why I was off kilter

Four days ago marked the second year of my father's passing. I forgot. I'm not upset that I forgot. I mean, who enjoys anniversaries of deaths? I'm sure he doesn't mind and I know he understands.

I feel better and as I began typing this the sun pierced the clouds for the first time today and a calmness came over my soul.

Thanks Dad

Another weird week incident

I was in Cosco in Bellingham and I saw a woman pushing a little 4 year-oldish girl in a shopping cart. The girl had little orphan annie hair and kept grabbing the woman's breasts with both hands.

"Stop that" the woman exclaimed.

"But I LIKE it" the little girl answered.

I was walking over to tell the woman that she had a cute lesbian daughter when my kids spotted me and knew by the look in my face that I was up to no good.

It took both of them and all their strength to hold me back.

True story. (well the part about the woman and daughter anyway)

I can't make shit this good up.

"I thought you said you were going to take the christmas lights down after you trimmed the trees!"

"Shut your bloody hole woman, I'm watching frikking OPRAH!!" 

Langley, BC welcomes Burning the Eight Track, the Johnsons, and The One Eyed Jacks for an exclusive one night only performance.

Ya know, with these big music acts and their contract riders and their multimillion dollar productions in outdoor stadium it's good to see that you can still find inexpensive live music at the grass roots level.

And I mean grass roots literally and figuratively as you will see in another of my poor man's photo essays.

Enjoy!

After weeks of back and forth bickering between the venue, the promoter, and a major ticket sales entity, a last minute solution was found that allowed the show to become reality 

I like the loose atmosphere of these festival type shows because they allow the fans to mingle with their musical heroes 

Members from all three bands enjoy a moment and a beverage in the green room before the show 

I mentioned the overgrown lawn in the V.I.P. section to the promoter and he said there were labor union issues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Johnsons had a gig scheduled in Langley, BC. When they showed up they discovered that the venue had been shut down by the local authorities. So the guy who organized the show took them over to play at a shed behind his house. First they had too empty the shed of all it's contents which included several pieces of furniture and other assorted crap. What they ended up with was a 5x15 meter room with punk rock posters and graffiti all over the walls.

It all seems laughable but it was a photographer's dream studio in which to shoot bands playing. About 30 kids showed up and four bands played. I shot three and enjoyed every bit. I captured the best images of my son playing ever.

I'll post more of the pics later. I know you'll really get a kick out of some of them. 

so the odyssey continues.

I'm down in the States in line for cheap gasoline and there's a slot open and the car in front of me, the car at the head of the line, doesn't move. I go around to an open pump. Then the car comes along on the opposite side of the pump. I hear Spanish being spoken and sense confusion and kids' voices. I peer around to see what's going on.

The lazy bitch behind the wheel is having her 9ish year-olds put gas in the car and one doesn't know how to do it and has chosen the wrong grade of gas and the brother is scolding her and trying to correct the situation while this bitch remains in the drivers' seat.

I speak fluent Spanish but I don't care today. I just want to fill up and get the hell out of there before mom decides to light up a cigarette and blow us all to shit.

THEN I'm heading to the grocery store car park (I feel so Euro) and another bitch pulls out of her slot and stops in the way. She's blocking three cars, one of which is mine, while she just sits there fiddling with something.

I honk and gesture the classic two handed WTF. As I pass her she says, "patience is a virtue sir". "Shut up" is my response.

Why is my orbit colliding with all the dead weight these days?

Here I am trying to work myself into a post with words instead of pictures because in a couple of weeks you may get neither for a month. I haven't decided. Definitely no words though.

Two people asked me if I said "please" this week and I replied, "sure, when I ask for things but right at this moment I'm telling you to do something. It's not a request".

I wonder if those idiots walk into a neighborhood bar and tell the bartender "don't you mean to say what'll ya have PLEASE?"

The sidewalk is a hard landing pad my pompous friends.

One of them worked at the U.N.. Those guys are all assholes anyway. Many people around the world look at the US ambassador to the UN and ask how Bush could appoint such an asshole. Well kids, they're ALL assholes.

Hell, even I'M an asshole. That means the shit is coming back your way bud.

Twice as hard/fast/much as you sent it my way.

 

 

 

 

Now that's my kinda diet!! Bloody Mary for breakfast, two Martinis for lunch, and a shot and a beer for dinner. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two news flashes:

My daughter and grandson arrived yesterday which was much earlier than expected and will stay long than expected. You're gonna have to wait for pics until some mosquito bites clear up.

My stay in Canada has been extended through September of 2007.

I just love it when Vesper gives me easy posts

List up to three:

Songs I loathe to the core of my being.

Dyer Makr by Led Zeppelin
Old time rock and roll by Bob Segar
Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffet

Musical acts that I loathe to the core of my being.

Joan Jett
Tony Orlando and Dawn
Ashley Simpson

Rolling Stones songs I love.

Gimme shelter
Slave
Jumping Jack Flash

Beatle songs I love.

Hey bulldog
You never give me your money
I dig a pony

Who songs I love.

Love aint for keeping
Eminence Front
Baba O'Rielly

Who songs I HATE.

My generation
Magic bus
Squeeze box

Reggae songs I love. (I impressed you by listing three different artists)

Many rivers to cross by Jimmy Cliff
Misty morning by Bob Marley
Bush doctor by Peter Tosh

Country songs I love.

Sweet dreams by Patsy Cline
The highwaymen by Cash. Haggard, Nelson, and Jennings
You shot the TV (but you were aiming at me) by Chuck Wagon and the Wheels

Movie soundtracks I love.

Purple Rain
Shawshank Redemption
Live and Die in L.A.

Musical soundtracks I love.

Jesus Christ Superstar
Westside Story
Tommy

Cover songs I love.

All along the watchtower by Jimi Hendrix
She moved thru the fair by Sinead O'Connor
Keep me hanging on by Deep Purple

Contemporary top 40 acts that I secretly love.

Spice Girls
Neil Diamond
Duran Duran

Songs that bring me to tears.

Taps (at funerals and the tomb of the unknown soldier)
Amazing Grace (on the bag pipes at funerals)
Come Come Ye Saints

Come Come Ye Saints is a Mormon hymm about the pioneers crossing the plains to Utah. Many died along the way. When I helped lay my infant nephew to rest and cover him up it was running through my head. Ever since then.....

Songs that make me (want to) shake my ass.

Word Up by Cameo
Pickin' up the pieces by Average White Band
Serpentine Fire by Earth, Wind, and Fire

Classical composers that I love.

Prince
Joni Mitchell
Mozart

Rap/Hip Hop songs I love.

The Devil and Coltrane Henry by Ridley Bent
California by Tupac and Dr. Dre
Sexy MF by Prince

70's songs I love. (cause I'm old)

Love is the drug by Roxy Music
Heart of the sunrise by Yes
Do you feel like we do by Peter Frampton

80's songs I love.

Tempted by Squeeze
Father figure by George Michael
Back to Ohio by The Pretenders

90's songs I love.

Soul to squeeze by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Smells like team spirit by Nirvana
Cordelia by The Tragically Hip

00's songs I love.

Avalanche by Matthew Good
Nicotina by Big Sugar
Ladylike by Big Wreck

Metal Songs I love. (probably more hard rock than metal if your really picky)

Homeward bound by Motley Crue
Estranged by Guns and Roses
Hymm 43 by Jethro Tull

New wave bands I love.

The Police
Talk Talk
Talking Heads

Soul/R&B songs I love. (the hardest to narrow to three)

Papa was a rolling stone by The Temptations
Reflections by the Supremes
That's the way of the world by Earth, Wind, and Fire.

Blues songs I love.

I'm a Man by Muddy Waters
Carolina Blues by Blues Traveler
When the thrill is gone by B.B King

Singer/Songwriter songs I love. (another tough one)

Possession by Sarah Maclachlan
Lay lady lay by Bob Dylan
Shades of Scarlet conquering by Joni Mitchell

Three really mellow songs I love.

Even in the quietest moments by Supertramp
Nada One by Heart
Long way there by The Little River Band

ZONA BOY gets new blog look, feels like actual blogger.

I look at my last four posts and I go, "wow dude, that aint half bad". I am filled to the brim with confidence. It's as if I'm opening my front door to you guests and instead of there being a large wire spool table with milk crate chairs there is a cool leather sofa and love seat combo.

Instead of fake neon beer signs on the wall there are framed arsty fartsy posters and instead of cinder blocks and 2x8 board book shelves I have IKEA wall units.

My shit is DOPE now.

Will it go to my head?

Can I live up to it?

Do chicks dig me?

That Italy vs Germany game was one of the best games I've seen. Did you hear me shout GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL when Italy scored? The baby that my wife tends sure did. I scared the bajeezus out of her. Poor thing. She was real quiet for a while but was her normal self when her mom came to pick her up.

Gonna be a big month for me. The two older kids will be here for a bit. Some vacation time will see me over to Victoria. Then the birthday hits me in the face. Can that lottery win be far off?

The future looks bright. Chloe and Moni set me up with some new digs and a whole new attitude.

I just hope my breath doesn't smell like ass.

You'ld tell me if it did, right?

Nolte to lure tourists to Sedona with PSA
The Arizona Republic (the Phoenix paper)

Actor Nick Nolte recorded a public service announcement last week to convince tourists that Sedona is beautiful, if a little scorched.

It's just one step the Sedona Chamber of Commerce is taking to help resuscitate the city's tourism industry now that the Brins fire is contained and TV crews have gone home.

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. I doubt very much that Sedona will use the pic I used.

The space shuttle lifted off into space today. That's probably why they call it the SPACE shuttle. Anywho a few days ago a 5 inch crack in the foam of the big red fuel tank was discovered and all the big wigs huddled to discuss the options.

They talked about safety.

I can't help but wonder if it was the safety of the crew or the safety of the funding NASA receives if they can keep the shuttle program limping forward until they retire the fleet in a few years.

I send good wishes for the safe return of this crew because I'm fairly sure that the discussion came down to a coin toss.

Actor's Studio questions (from Vesper)

What is your favorite word?

Home

What is your least favorite word?

Work

What turns you on creatively, spiritually, or emotionally?

Creatively would be when I put myself in camera mode and compose shots in my mind. That makes me want to grab the camera. Spiritually would be nothing. I equate spiritual with religion and I don't have much use for religion. Emotionally would be when I see a woman who has a certain glow to her. A glow that invites me to leave everything behind and that she would too and we'd just go off somewhere.

What turns you off?

Anybody who believes for whatever reason that I am somehow lower than them.

What is your favorite curse word?

Pendejo. (pen DAY ho) Literally it means pubic hair but as an insult it's 10x whatever YOU use.

What sound or noise do you love?

The always very faint sound of breasts slipping out the bottom of a bra. Hey, YOU asked.

What sound or noise do you hate?

The alarm clock.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

High school history teacher. You thought I was going to say photographer but I don't want that ever to be work in any way, shape, or form.

What profession would you not like to do?

Restaurant manager. Too much work for 40 hours pay.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

He's going to have to explain why my baby sister had to put up with so much shit in her life. Other than that, nothing. Because if he exists I aint ever gonna see him.

The 4th of July ranks somewhere down towards the bottom on my top ten list of important days for me. Sure I'm a proud American who enjoys a day off and fireworks but I hate parades, MOST parades anyway and large gatherings in parks.

It's like Christmas in a way. Everybody remembers to party but few remember the argument over the Declaration of Independence and then how all the signers of the document had to flee their homes because they were now traitors in the eyes of the crown and would certainly be hanged if apprehended.

Few remember that about half of all white people in the colonies were opposed to independence and that the colonies got along together about as well as thirteen women all reaching for the same wedding dress on the sale rack.

Few people know that George Washington was 6'3" making him a giant both physically and figuratively. Many people look at Thomas Jefferson as a strong character when in reality he rarely spoke during sessions of the continental congress and many, when they found out he had been tasked with writing the Constitution, thought, HIM?!?!?!?!

Few Americans realize that the Constitution was not a independent creation of thought by Jefferson but was largely based on European, mainly French, ideas.

And what bothers me the MOST is that the Constitution really opens up our freedoms and lets us express who we are in a manner of our choosing free from government meddling for the most part, but the last few congresses and the current president have sought to add amendments to the Constitution that exclude a group of people from the pursuit of happiness soley based on who they fall deeply in love with, and limit somebody's freedom to express their opinion by setting fire to a piece of cloth that is a symbol. A symbol that can survive a little fire and still represent a people who are proud.

Wow, this post ended up being entirely different that what I had in mind when I started. I WAS going to talk about going to the bank, getting sushi for lunch, and watching the Italy vs Germany game.

WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING

Be prepared to be bombarded with NEW grandson pictures.

He arrives in 10 days.

I switched days off with a friend who needed a favor and ran into another friend at the airport. Mad Child gave me his cell number and told me to call if I needed a hook up with tix to the Swollen Members' show in Vancouver on July 13th.

My daughter arrives from Calgary that day and the wife says she likes hip hop so maybe I'll give the man a call.

I like receiving good karma for favors.

When the clock strikes midnight

New young love is electric. Curiosity and a gleam in the eyes. Deep kisses and long embraces with no words needed. Longing separations that seem long but are really short. And you just know that it will be like that forever so you make a big leap.

But in your inexperience of things worldly you fail to realize that's exactly what it is. A leap. Soon the embrace turns into a clinging of sorts. Now there is work to be done and bills to pay. Meals to cook and dishes to clean. Where once you watched TV in each other's arms and laughed at the quirky life characters on the screen those characters now seem so damned stupid and you're so tired.

Love changes because now there are responsibilities of spending your lives together. You chose to do this and your parents said it was hard but you didn't believe them because surely they didn't experience what you are experiencing. But they did. And they got through it and that's why they're still together.

Look at any couple who has been together for a long period of time and you will see a couple who has been where you are. People say the key is communication and I say that it's definitely a part but the bigger key is deciding that you are going to work at this.

The kids pop into the picture and they are precious and you instantly know that you would give your life for them without question. Well I'm here to tell you that it is a greater sacrifice to LIVE your life for them.

One thing is certain about becoming adult to the majority of us. You are going to have to get a job and work and pay bills. You want to make it better for your kids than it was for you. I'm certain we all said that no matter how we were raised.

It's hard?

You bet it is.

It only gets easy when you commit to making it all work. Then you find direction and you move ahead instead of staring at the ground and wondering how a beautiful carriage became a rotting pumpkin and blaming the past for being the past.

Playing list for a few days.

Joe Jackson is an incredible talent. Writer, composer, arranger, and singer. These selections are from his double live 1980-86 release. Songs performed by four different bands that he toured with, and selected by him.

His performance of Stepping Out on this release is nothing short of beautiful.

Track list

One To One
Is she really going out with him?
Don't wanna be like that
On your radio
Fools in love
Look sharp
Real men
Be my number two
Breaking us in two
It's different for girls
You can't get what you want (until you know what you want)
Jumpin' jive
Steppin' out

CHLOE I LOVE IT!!!

THANK YOU!!!

XOXOXO

If I had to pick a favorite photograph that I have taken it would be this one. I took it in Oruro, Bolivia in 1978. The morning light was perfect. I love the postion of the women because they give the shot action. I love the way you can see the oranges piled high in the stalls and you think, "look at that mountain of oranges". I still remember exactly where it was shot. I was using an instamatic camera because I could not afford the 35mm camera I really wanted to take on my mission. The thing is that I might not have gotten this shot otherwise because I always had the small instamatic camera in my pocket. For that reason the shot is grainy when you enlarge it.

For me a BIG part of photography is being in the right place at the right time or having access to important subject matter. The right light. The right equipment. I know people who will find what they want to shoot and then wait for hours sometimes for the light to be just right. I think about doing that sometimes but I just don't have the time.

Life moves quickly and moments vanish just as quickly. So this photo represents a compromise of sorts. I caught the moment with a cheap camera but the moment was so spectacular that it still comes through boldly. 

'What" will your obituary say?' at QuizGalaxy.com

 

Argentina and Brasil are both out of the World Cup so I'm bummed.

Germany has won it before

France has won it before

Italy has won it before

That means....

LET'S GO PORTUGAL!!!!